By IANS
NEW DELHI: Air India said on Wednesday it had sent a relief airplane after a jet from New Delhi to San Francisco had to land in eastern Russia with an engine problem.
Union Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia said that the alternate flight was dispatched to the Magadan airport from Mumbai around 1 p.m. and it will take six hours to reach there.
“Once the flight reaches, the passengers will be flown to their destination which is San Francisco,” he said.
Video footage has surfaced on Twitter showing stranded Air India passengers forced to sleep on the floor of a school after their San Francisco-bound flight was diverted to Magadan in Russia due to a technical snag.
Earlier, on Tuesday Air India flight AI173, from Delhi to San Francisco, was forced to divert and make an emergency landing at Magadan airport in Russia due to a technical issue with one of its engines, officials said.
The plane, a Boeing 777 carrying 216 passengers and 16 crew members, landed safely at Russia’s Magadan airport in Siberia in the country’s far east on Tuesday, Air India said in a statement.
UPDATE: FERRY FLIGHT TO MAGADAN AIRBORNEOur ferry flight AI195 from Mumbai (BOM) to Magadan, Russia (GDX) is now airborne, and is expected to arrive at GDX at 0630 Hours (local time) on 08 June 2023.An Air India team is on board the flight to provide any support that the… pic.twitter.com/oIwrqrF3po
— Air India (@airindia) June 7, 2023
The flight “developed a technical issue with one of its engines,” the statement said, adding that the aircraft was undergoing safety checks and the passengers were being provided support on the ground.
With “infrastructural limitations around the remote airport”, passengers were put up in “makeshift accommodation” in the town, it added.
The statement noted that the ferry flight AI195 from Mumbai to Magadan, Russia is now airborne and was expected to arrive at 6:30 am Thursday.
Vedant Patel, a U.S. State Department spokesman, said that American citizens were likely on the flight but could not immediately confirm how many.
“We are continuing to monitor the situation,” Patel said.
Girvaan Kaahma, 16, was travelling on the flight with his uncle and brother. He said they are barred from leaving the hostel where they are staying in Magadan and can’t use their credit cards to buy items from the vending machine because of sanctions over Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Kaahma said the airline told the passengers they would likely leave Russia for the U.S. on Thursday.
The Air India spokesperson said that the ferry flight is carrying food and other essentials for our passengers.
“All of us at Air India are concerned about the passengers and staff and are making every effort possible to operate the ferry flight as soon as possible, and to ensure the health, safety, and security of all while they wait,” said the airline in a statement issued on Wednesday.
“As we do not have any Air India staff based in the remote town of Magadan or in Russia, all ground support being provided to the passengers is the best possible in this unusual circumstance through our round-the-clock liaison with the Consulate General of India in Vladivostok, Ministry of External Affairs (Government of India), local ground handlers, and the Russian authorities,” it added.
( With inputs from AP and AFP)
NEW DELHI: Air India said on Wednesday it had sent a relief airplane after a jet from New Delhi to San Francisco had to land in eastern Russia with an engine problem.
Union Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia said that the alternate flight was dispatched to the Magadan airport from Mumbai around 1 p.m. and it will take six hours to reach there.
“Once the flight reaches, the passengers will be flown to their destination which is San Francisco,” he said.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });
Video footage has surfaced on Twitter showing stranded Air India passengers forced to sleep on the floor of a school after their San Francisco-bound flight was diverted to Magadan in Russia due to a technical snag.
Earlier, on Tuesday Air India flight AI173, from Delhi to San Francisco, was forced to divert and make an emergency landing at Magadan airport in Russia due to a technical issue with one of its engines, officials said.
The plane, a Boeing 777 carrying 216 passengers and 16 crew members, landed safely at Russia’s Magadan airport in Siberia in the country’s far east on Tuesday, Air India said in a statement.
UPDATE: FERRY FLIGHT TO MAGADAN AIRBORNE
Our ferry flight AI195 from Mumbai (BOM) to Magadan, Russia (GDX) is now airborne, and is expected to arrive at GDX at 0630 Hours (local time) on 08 June 2023.
An Air India team is on board the flight to provide any support that the… pic.twitter.com/oIwrqrF3po
— Air India (@airindia) June 7, 2023
The flight “developed a technical issue with one of its engines,” the statement said, adding that the aircraft was undergoing safety checks and the passengers were being provided support on the ground.
With “infrastructural limitations around the remote airport”, passengers were put up in “makeshift accommodation” in the town, it added.
The statement noted that the ferry flight AI195 from Mumbai to Magadan, Russia is now airborne and was expected to arrive at 6:30 am Thursday.
Vedant Patel, a U.S. State Department spokesman, said that American citizens were likely on the flight but could not immediately confirm how many.
“We are continuing to monitor the situation,” Patel said.
Girvaan Kaahma, 16, was travelling on the flight with his uncle and brother. He said they are barred from leaving the hostel where they are staying in Magadan and can’t use their credit cards to buy items from the vending machine because of sanctions over Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Kaahma said the airline told the passengers they would likely leave Russia for the U.S. on Thursday.
The Air India spokesperson said that the ferry flight is carrying food and other essentials for our passengers.
“All of us at Air India are concerned about the passengers and staff and are making every effort possible to operate the ferry flight as soon as possible, and to ensure the health, safety, and security of all while they wait,” said the airline in a statement issued on Wednesday.
“As we do not have any Air India staff based in the remote town of Magadan or in Russia, all ground support being provided to the passengers is the best possible in this unusual circumstance through our round-the-clock liaison with the Consulate General of India in Vladivostok, Ministry of External Affairs (Government of India), local ground handlers, and the Russian authorities,” it added.
( With inputs from AP and AFP)
